How to Have Fun in Romania. Helpful advice from a wandering Dutchman

Looking back on the past year, I can truly say that fun and enjoyment play a big part in the life of Romanians. I was fortunate enough to be part of quite a few of these joyful moments and it would seem selfish of me if I didn’t share some of these fun experiences with our readers.

Nightlife

Who would have guessed that Bucharest has such a bustling nightlife? Not me, that’s for sure! But when you live in Bucharest, going out becomes part of your life. You can’t let even one week pass by without going out at least once for a drink and some good music in one of the numerous places in the old city centre or in the northern area of Bucharest. On these occasions, I noticed that people here not only go out on weekends, but that the pubs, clubs and cafés are already packed as early as Wednesday. Of course, it all peaks on Friday and Saturday nights when places like Fratelli, BOA, Player and many others offer a great atmosphere in which to enjoy cool DJs, lavish interiors, perfect lights and fine drinks. The party then continues into the early hours of the morning.

Amazing gala events

Living in the capital of Romania and having strong ties to the business community here has given me some great opportunities to attend extraordinary events – and the one that impressed me the most was the Orange Night organized by the Romanian Chamber of Commerce on the Dutch national holiday of King’s Day. It was an excellent occasion to meet most of the members of the Dutch community in Romania. The Romanians and the Dutch celebrated together, enjoyed traditional Dutch food and continued the evening dancing to Dutch and Romanian music.

Weddings, baptisms and the fascinating hora

Romanians are open and friendly people and it was easy to make friends here . I was of course impressed and at the same time honoured to be invited to important moments in their lives like anniversaries and even weddings and baptisms. What I found unusual in the case of weddings and baptisms was the late starting hour, but I soon got used to having dish after dish served to me after midnight – and I am not talking about snacks or salads but heavy food like stuffed cabbage rolls and steaks. It’s always advisable to dance a lot between the servings just to make sure you burn off the calories. While most wedding couples choose to have their music played by a DJ, it’s also common to hire a band playing more than one genre. It’s during these events that I learned to dance the hora, which is actually not difficult at all: you just have to hold hands with many people and move in a circle preferably following the rhythm of the music.

The Balkanik festival

This was an unexpectedly lively event. It brought together many different Balkan traditions and introduced me to Balkan music, of which I have become quite a fan. I especially enjoyed the performance by Amsterdam Klezmer Band and Shantel, whose real name is Stefan Hantel, a German DJ born in Frankfurt who got famous by mixing Balkan and gypsy music with electronic beats. It has been impossible ever since to get catchy tunes like “Disko Partizani” or “Disko Boy” out of my head.

Oktoberfest? Here?

I love Oktoberfest and I was sure that this year I would have to skip it. I couldn’t have been more wrong because I discovered that for a few years Oktoberfest has been celebrated in Romania as well. So I happily joined a merry group of friends on a short trip to Brașov – a city with an old Saxon heritage – for this event. Such a sensation! It seemed like all of a sudden I was in Munich! A huge white and blue tent, tables and benches as far as the eye could see, a band playing traditional Oktoberfest songs and people enjoying beer, hearty steaks and sausages and the wonderful atmosphere altogether. It has been an amazing year, I have learned so many things about Romanians and Romania in general, a place where I feel good, peaceful, joyful and at ease.